Manual switch



G. W. PEARCE March 8, 1949.

MANUAL SWITCH Filed Aug. 13, 1946 IN V EN TOR.

QBeorge mlaeurce a l w j 3 w w 9 0/. 2 E f 2 9 1 ATTORNEY Patented Mar. 1949 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE MANUAL SWITCH George W. Pearce, Peabody, Mass., assignor to Sylvania Electric Products Inc., Salem, Mass., a corporation of Massachusetts Application August 13, 1946, Serial No. 690,241

4 Claims. (Cl. 200-16) device circuit with a slide button manual switch which is adapted to control both the lamp electrode pre-heating circuit and the lamp operating circuit.

A further object is to provide a fluorescent lamp circuit with a slide button manual switch which is constructed in a manner which will enable an operator to cause the lamp to light by a single, simple manipulation of the switch slide button.

Further objects, advantages and features will be apparent from the following description when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawing in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of the switch of my invention.

Figure 2 is a sectional view of the switch taken along the longitudinal axis thereof.

Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of a fluorescent lamp circuit with which the switch of my invention may be employed.

A conventional fluorescent lamp usually comprises an elongated tube having filamentary electrodes coated with one or more of the alkaline earth oxides sealed at eachend thereof, a coating of fluorescent material on the inner wall of the tube and an inert gas and mercury vapor sealed therein. These lamps usually will not start immediately when connected directly to an ordinary domestic 110-120 volt line. Therefore certain auxiliary apparatus is usually employed to aid in starting the lamps. This usually comprises a switch adapted to cause a preheating of the electrodes to electron-emitting temperatures and a reactance coil to ballast the lamp during operation and to provide an inductive voltage surge at starting.

In designing portable fluorescent lamp fixtures, such as desk, table and floor lamp fixtures it is desirable to eliminate or streamline all auxiliary equipment as much as possible so that a minimum departure from conventional incandescent lamp fixtures will benecessary. Ac-

cordingly, I have designed a slide button manual switch which not only controls the connection of the lamp to the line but also provides for the electrode pre-heating which is necessary before the lamp will start. An additional feature embodied in the switch of my invention is the arrangement of parts whereby a single manipulation of the switch button efiects both the application of the line voltage and the electrode preheating.

The switch of my invention comprises a channel-like body member I, a switch operating slide 2 having a switch operating button 3 mounted on the top thereof and extending through an elongated aperture t in the face of the body member I, and a base plate 5 which is provided with certain electrical connectors which will be described more fully below. The body member l is provided with a plurality of fingers 6 which are bent over the base plate to retain it in the body member. The ends of the body member I are provided with ears I with holes 8 therein, through which the switch may be attached to a suitable mounting surface.

The base plate 5 is provided with electrical contact members 9, l0, H and I2. Each of these members comprise an elongated metal strip with one end fixedly connected to the base plate and the other and free to be connected to the lamp circuit. A portion of each of these contact members 9 l0, H and I2 extends across the inside face I3 of the base plate to provide a bearing surface the purpose of which will be described in detail below. The base plate 5 is further provided with a resilient arcuate metallic strip l'l one end of which is fixedly connected to that portion of the contact strip III which extends across the inside face l3 of the base plate and the other end of which is free and is normally disposed slightly above that portion of the contact strip 9 which extends across the inside face l3 of the base plate.

The switch operating slide 2, on top of which the switch operating button is mounted, is provided with an aperture ll in its inner face, adjacent one end thereof, in which a, spring l5 and an electrical contact member IS, a metal ball for example, are mounted. The slide 2 is tapered, being considerably thicker at the end adjacent which the spring l 5 and metal ball !6 are mounted. If desired, the end of the spring l5 which engages the metal ball I 6 may be provided with an elongated loop 23-150 aid in insuring the proper disposition of the ball at all times. I have found that if the diameter of the coil of the spring I which engages the ball is not at least almost as great as the diameter oi the aperture II, the ball I 6 tends to become dislocated from its proper position. For example, when the slide operating button 3 is moved to the leilt in turning the switch on, the spring I5 tends to bend and if the spring I5 is not of the suggested or similar construction, the spring will not carry the ball IS in the positive manner desired.

When the switch is in the off position a portion of the ball I6 is disposed slightly to the rear of contact member I 2 on the inner face I3 of the base plate 5 and is urged to a positive con= tact therewith by the spring I5 (Figure 2) The switch is turned on by moving the operating button 3 through the elongated aperture 4 in face of the body member I. When force is applied to the button 3 to effect this movement the tapered end of the switch operating slide 2 will tilt downwardly with the slide 2 pivoting about the point 24. This will cause the slide to engage the resilient strip ii and cause its free end to engage the electrical contact member 9, thus bridging contact members 9 and Ill. As the application of force to the operating button 3 is continued the spring I5 will contract and permit the ball I6 to move over that portion of the contact member I2 which is on the inner face of the base plate 5 and come to rest between, and in contact with, the electrical contact members I I and I2, thus bridging these two contacts. The remainder of the movement of the operating button 3 from the off to the on position will effect a continuance of the bridging of contact members 9 and ill by the resilient strip ll. These contacts 9 and ID will remain bridged until the application of force to the operating button 3 is discontinued.

The switch of my invention has proved par= ticularly satisfactory when used with a fluorescent lamp and the manner in which it is so employed is illustrated in Figure 3. In this figure a fluorescent lamp I8, provided with filamentary electrodes I9 and 20, is connected to a conventional power supply line 2i. One side of line 2| is connected to contact member I2 and the other side of the line is connected to one end of filamentary electrode I9 through a reactance coil 22 which ballasts the lamp during operation and provides an inductive voltage surge at starting. One end of filamentary electrode 20 is con nected to the contact member i i. The other ends of filamentary electrodes I9 and 29 are connected to contact members 9 and I0.

To light the lamp IS, the switch operating button 3 is moved from the oif to the on position. As described above, as soon as a force is applied to the button 3, the tapered switch operating slide 2 will tilt downwardly pivoting about the metal ball I6, thus causing the resilient arcuate metal strip I! to bridge the contacts 9 and Ill, thus closing the circuit therethrough. As the button 3 moves through the aperture 4 in the body member I it carries with it the ball I6 which moves across that portion of the contact member I2 which lies on the inner face I3 of the base plate 5 and into a position where it bridges the contact members II and I2. The bridging of the contact members II and I2 closes the circuit through the switch from the line 2!. Since the contact members 9 and II] have already been bridged by the resilient arcuate metal strip I1, the closing of the circuit from the line 2i through the contacts I I and I2 will also cause the full line voltage to be applied to the filamentary electrodes 4 It and 20 to heat them to electron-emitting temperature.

The switch of my invention has been designed to provide a time interval, between the bridging of the contact members II and I2 by the metal ball 58 and the completion of the act of moving the button from the oil to the on position-by an operator and the removal or his hand from the button 3, to heat the filamentary electrodes I9 and 20. When the operator removes his hand from the button 3, the slide 2, which had been tilted downwardly to cause the resilient arcuate metal strip I! to bridge the contact-members O and I0, will revert back to its normal position thus opening the circuit through the contact members 9 and Ill. The opening of this circuit produces a voltage surge across the lamp II caused by the discharging of the reactance coil. This voltage surge initiates the discharge within the lamp.

What I claim is:

1. A switch for starting electric gaseous discharge devices comprising a body member, an operating slide movable substantially linearly therein, said slide comprising an operating button and a tapered body, a base plate connected to said body member, two pairs of electrical contact members mounted in said base plate, means carried by the thicker end of the tapered body of said operating slide and adapted to bridge one pair of said electrical contact members, and means carried by one of the members of the other pair of electrical contact members and adapted to bridge said pair of members, the bridging of both pairs of electrical contact members being eiiected sequentially by movement of the operating slide from the off to the on position.

2. A switch for starting electric gaseous dis charge devices comprising a body member, a base plate connected to said body member, a pair oi electrical contact members mounted in said base plate, a resilient conductor having one end connected to one of said electrical contact members, the other end being free and normally disposed above and in register with the other contact member, a second pair of electrical contact members mounted in said base plate, a switch operating slide disposed in said body member and movable substantially linearly therein, said slide comprising an operating button and a tapered body, and electrical conducting means carried by the thicker end of the tapered body of said operating slide, said resilient conductor and said electrical conducting means being adapted to bridge said first mentioned and said second mentioned pair of electrical contact members respectively sequentially by movement of the operating slide from the off to the on position.

3. A switch for starting electric gaseous discharge devices comprising a body member, a tapered operating slide movable substantially linearly therein, a base plate connected to said body member, a pair of electrical contact members mounted in said base plate, a resilient conductor having one end connected to one of said electrical contact members, the other end being free and normally disposed above and in register with the other contact member and adapted to bridge said contact members upon the application of a substantially lateral force to said operating slide, a second pair of electrical contact members mounted in said base plate, electrical conducting means carried by the thicker end of said operating slide and adapted, upon the application of a substantially lateral force to said operating slide to bridge said second pair of electrical contact members, the bridging of the first mentioned and second mentioned pair of electrical contact members being sequentially effected by movement of the operating slide from the off to the on position.

4. A switch for starting electric gaseous discharge devices comprising a body member, a tapered operating slide movable substantially linearly therein, said slide being provided with an aperture therein which is located adjacent the thicker end thereof, a base plate connected to said body member, a pair of electrical contact members mounted in said base plate, a resilient conductor having one end connected to one of said electrical contact members, the other end being free and normally disposed above and in register with the othercontact member and adapted to bridge said contact members, a second pair of electrical contact members mounted in said base plate, electrical conducting means car- REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent: I

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,107,646 Benedict Aug. 18, 1914 2,279,753 Knopp Apr. 14, 1942 

